They say home is where your rump rests, but I think it’s a little more than that. Home is something different for everyone. Some people can find “home” just about anywhere, they are happy to be on the road, to travel and be meeting with people all the time. However for me home is about comfort and a sense of cosiness I cannot get anywhere else, but what creates that coziness?

Feeling comfortable and cozy to me is all about having my “comforts” around me, and although that sounds materialistic they don’t have to be material things. My favourite time of the year is winter, because it’s a time when all I want to do is curl up under a blanket with a book, a puzzle or a good tv series to watch. I like snuggling up to my cat with a warm cup of coffee or hot chocolate, wearing something comfortable like a warm pair of tights or tracksuit pants and a jumper or long sleeve shirt. I guess I prefer to be at my “home” because that’s where I can get away with wearing these things, where I can make a cup of coffee if I want to, change into tights if I feel like it, curl up in my favourite chair, and I like to have people around me. I must admit I much prefer people to come to my house than I like to visit them. I need to be in a tidy environment, and I don’t mind cooking for others, but I really do like the environment I have spent so much time trying to make my own, making functional, cosy and welcoming. A place where I can be myself, and where the people I love are welcome.

We have been having some issues with our home lately, we live in a small house, which we thought was fine when we first moved here because of how close it is to work and to the city, we have everything within a 15min drive. But we are starting to feel the space issue, however we also like the house because it’s old (possibly from the 1920’s or earlier) and it has some old fashioned charm; like the old mantle piece framing what used to be a fire place, it has the old doors with the stained glass, and the higher windows above the doors and of course wall paper that’s peeling off in the hallway. Don’t get me wrong, the house doesn’t look like it’s falling down yet, the owners have put in a new kitchen, there’s a deck at the door off our kitchen and we’ve made some functional space in the courtyard under the carport. We have spent this year trying to “re-jig” the house to make it fit our needs for now due to the amount of effort and expense involved in moving. We have finally made the spare bedroom functional, it’s a nice cosy space to use the sewing machine, play the keyboard or just read a book. I’ve created a reading nook in the small sunroom off our bedroom, and the lounge room is as cosy as it ever was. As I’m writing this and thinking about all the positives this house has, it far outweighs the negatives, and I really can’t justify leaving it. We were only just talking recently about how much we are alike in the way we are both home-bodies to some extent, we both like to have a nice quiet evening in front of the tv at home. We have become quite fond of the house, and would feel disappointed leaving it.

Which brings me back to what a home is… It’s not just a building where you rest your rump at the end of the day, where you store all your belongings. A storage facility can do all of these things. Home is where you want to go to relax at the end of the day with the ones you care about, at Christmas it’s where you want to share your family’s company, and it’s where you are most comfortable. I am having some time off over Christmas and I am looking forward to spending some time at home, having barbecues, home cooked dinners, doing some sewing, reading, maybe playing some board games and working on some music at my keyboard. I might sound like an old fashioned old lady, but I guess to some degree it comes from my upbringing, it took a lot of time for me to learn how to entertain myself and how to be on my own and now I appreciate it and find it beneficial for my mental health.

With the Christmas season upon us, it’s important to remember what is important, and it doesn’t include being surrounded by lots of belongings. Our house is decorated with lots of photos rather than nick nacks, and that’s what we like, it helps brighten up the house and we are surrounding ourselves with happy memories, family and friends.

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About myhousewifelifeblog

I am a nurse by trade, and a traditional "de facto" housewife by nature. Constantly seeking a more organised existence. I like to cook, sew and play my keyboard. I try to keep my house organised but I've not yet mastered this, and I am endeavouring to reach my image of ultimate organisation at home. I'm not sure if it's possible, but I'll give it a go.